MEDIA

Biowell Compact Disinfection Unit

bitemagazine.com.au
by Dr Jason Pang, Cosmic Smile Dental, Neutral Bay, NSW

Ozone is nature’s bleach and a natural disinfectant. It kills bacteria, fungi, viruses and it does it very quickly. This unit is mounted on the wall in our sterile area and produces ozonated water on demand.

What’s good about it

Dental water lines can contain a huge amount of bacteria if there are no flush and clean protocols in place. This bacteria doesn’t affect most people but if you are dealing with immuno-compromised individuals, it can be dangerous. We decided to see what difference ozonated water makes.

After a weekend, we tested the water in our lines on a Monday morning. The lines were full of bacteria and there was obviously room for improvement. When we flushed the lines with ozonated water and used ozonated water throughout the day, the test showed that no bacteria was present.

We also use the ozonated water in a number of other ways. Every patient has a preoperative mouth rinse of ozonated water. For perio patients, we use ozonated water in conjunction with deep ultrasonic scaling. This helps activate the ozone and causes a bacterial killing process. We use it for irrigating endodontic procedures and we flush any perio pockets with the water. We also used it to clean all instruments and wipe down chairs and surfaces.

On top of this, there was an unexpected side effect to using ozonated water. Our dental suite is positioned in a building that doesn’t have underfloor sewage but instead uses a series of pumps. There was one drain in the lab that always smelled bad. The use of ozonated water caused that smell to completely disappear.

What’s not so good

The unit is expensive to purchase. There can also be extra costs depending on the set-up of the surgery and whether the unit is plumbed into the water lines of the dental chair.

Where did you get it

What Business Does Kindness Have In Business?

www.newsmaker.com.au

BNI Middle Harbour is the first of the 6,600 BNI chapters representing 170,000 members in 58 countries worldwide to join the global campaign for a Kinder World thanks to a local initiative, Feel Good Feb.

The chapter will be hosting a Signing Ceremony on the 8^th of May in the presence of special guests including the General Secretary to the World Kindness Movement, the peak global body, local community and business leaders. The City of Sydney and Gold Coast along with numerous local Councils, Schools, businesses and NFP organisations across Australia have already taken the first step and signed Declarations of Support since Australia was elected at the London 2012 General Assembly to spearhead global strategies to create a kinder world.

Locally “Kindness is Catching” is finding its way to the Northern Beaches inspired by the success of a grass roots campaign, Feel Good Feb (ref Manly Daily Jan 2015) which started with a local Manly mum, Linda Pang, who wanted good news stories to refocus media coverage from the negative to the positive. Mrs Pang joins an impressive list of recipients of the Cool To Be Kind Award along with Dame Marie Bashir and City of Sydney Councillor, Christine Forster.

During the Feel Good Campaign BNI Middle Harbour executive embraced the Kindness Movement and invited special guest speaker, Mr Michael Lloyd-White Chairman of World Kindness Australia and General Secretary of the peak global body, the World Kindness Movement to address its members and VIP guests. “The World Kindness Movement engages nations and organisations from all sectors to participate in a global campaign for a kinder world and BNI is an ideal candidate to become an agent for positive change” says Mr Lloyd-White. “Business has an important role to play to create positive change and it’s not about making donations, it’s about being engaged in your community. Kindness is not about flowers and hearts it is often about taking the path of most resistance and often requires courage to seek the kinder option.”

BNI Middle Harbour President, Pru Chapman

“As a local business group we feel that we can have a greater impact and wanted to put our collective energies into a positive future.  As a group we were captured and inspired by the World Kindness Movement and see this as a great step in moving towards a friendlier future in which we recognise and are grateful for one another.  We hope that in taking up this initiative we can inspire other local businesses to do the same, and spread the kindness movement through the Northern Beaches and beyond.”

BNI Middle Harbour Vice-President, Jason Pang

“We believe that having kindness as a core value of business will build stronger long-term relationships with clients, suppliers and the local community. It provides direction and acts as a moral compass for business to act in a socially responsible way instead of focusing solely on the bottom line. Individually the member business will have kindness as a principle tenet, and collectively we will support kindness initiatives to contribute towards creating a kinder world.”

BNI Middle Harbour meet weekly at Balgowlah to collaborate, share ideas and network to support local business members. For more information please visit http://www.myteam.net.au

Background World Kindness Posted WKA FB 10^th April 2015

“Just a quick update since Feel Good Feb campaign we welcome Konica Minolta as a new corporate member, Caring for You Nursing Agency Melbourne, William Roberts Lawyers and NSW Parents’ Council and BNI Middle Harbour as our newest members. World Kindness Movement International Council Meeting last night, which we chaired in our capacity as Secretariat. Apart from Australia this includes China, France, India, Korea, Nigeria, Switzerland, Thailand and USA, which comprise the international board. We will be attending the official launch of World Kindness France in Avignon on 27th June and facilitating a 2-day workshop and Council Meeting on developing global strategies to create a kinder world as a prelude to the world leaders’ summit the K20. The London Times contacted our office as part of a feature story they are doing on the growing global campaign and social media buy in which we look forward to sharing. If your organisation or city/council is looking to participate and support this global campaign please contact us at ambassador@worldkindnessaustralia.org”

PERFECT TEETH

7perth.springcms.com.au

REPORTER: DAVID RICHARDSON

No drilling, no pain, and you can have that smile you’ve always dreamed of, quick, easy and no pain — it sounds too good to be true; a painless dental visit. But now you can get a celebrity smile, thanks to a revolutionary new treatment that is changing lives. “Many people don’t have the teeth they want they’re very embarrassed with their smile, so they train themselves not to smile with their teeth. It’s very common and it’s something we’d like to change.” says Dentist, Dr. Saade Saade.

“Before I didn’t even show my teeth. I would smile like this in photos but now I show my teeth and it’s made a huge difference to my life.” says Lisa, one of the first in the country to undergo this 21st century dental innovation. It’s called “snap-on smile” — “It’s a two appointment process. We take a mould at the first appointment, we send that away and a month later you come back and you get your snap on smile. It is really as simple as that”, said Dr. Saade Saade.

Dr. Saade is using the snap on smile to fix any number of problems, from missing teeth to covering unsightly gaps — or worse. “We had this lady who through many years of neglect had a lot of fillings, a lot of dental work. She was unhappy with her smile. Not surprising really — discoloured teeth, missing teeth, and with a snap on smile for top and bottom jaw we gave her a very beautiful smile in two appointments”, he said.

The snap on smile is made from a tough new resin devised in the United States. They don’t fade or discolour, and are shatter proof. In 3 weeks Lisa had a new Hollywood smile, thanks to her cosmetic dentist Dr. Timothy Goh. “What we’ve done is we’ve extended her teeth by about 3-millimetres and brought out her lower lip a little bit more. It sounds like a lot but it looks really, really nice.” Dr Goh said. “A snap on smile will start at $2,200, this is a fraction of the cost of getting porcelain veneers or porcelain crowns. Not only do we change the patients’ teeth, we change their self esteem. They become more confident and a lot happier”, Dr. Saade said.

Even people with pretty good teeth like Helen, are keen for a new look.”It’s just showing too much gum when I smile, so I’m not exactly happy with that”, Helen said. In three weeks, Helen will have a new set of snap on teeth. “The snap on smile is going to be revolutionary because it’s removable, it’s quick to put on, and it’s very comfortable for the patients to wear”, said Dr Jason Pang.

“You can decide what kind of smile you like. Whether you want the Julia Roberts type wide smile and you can choose the shape and the size of the teeth. Of course the colour as well — the possibilities are almost limitless”, Dr Pang said. If zoom 3 revolutionised tooth whitening in the dental surgery, now the same effect can be had at home, a whitening kit like no other. “In the past the home kits that were available the patient would have to wear a bleaching tray for about 10 to 14 nights for about 2 to 4 hours a night. and sometimes overnight.” says Dr Sophia Petta.

Dr. Petta can make a special mouthguard for the at home kit in less than 30 minutes. The rest is done in the comfort of your home. “Two applications a day of 15 minutes each, for 7 days. It’s a lot stronger than the other home kits that are available — currently as far as I am aware, it is the strongest on the market at 38% carbamide peroxide. They can get up to 14 shades lighter depending on the original colour of their teeth”, she added.

These two latest cosmetic innovations are now within reach of more and more everyday Australians. And with a new Zoom 4 whitening system on the way to our shores late this year, it’s set to cut treatment time down to less than a lunch break.Whatever the system, patients can’t be happier.

Why are women everywhere brushing their teeth with charcoal?

www.theglow.com.au

I’m no stranger to bizarre health and beauty treatments popping up on my Instagram feed. Girls slathered in coffee bean scrub? Sure. Fitness models sipping detox tea? Yawn. But there’s a new health trend that’ll stop you in your Instagram-trawling tracks: women, mouth dripping black, brushing their teeth with charcoal.

Legions of women and health and beauty bloggers are posting selfies of their teeth coated in jet-black charcoal, all in pursuit of a natural, pearly white smile. Apparently.

RELATED:The coffee scrub that’s an Instagram sensation

But before you head out to the BBQ for some DIY tooth whitening, not all charcoal is created equal. When charcoal is exposed to certain gases, it becomes activated (yes, like almonds).

Activated charcoal is highly absorbent and removes toxins it comes into contact with. It’s used in mainstream medicine to expel unwanted chemicals from the body, such as after someone swallows poison and has their stomach pumped.

Admittedly, water filters also use activated charcoal to remove impurities so it’s not a far stretch. So far, so good.

New Australian brand Warpaint is leading the forefront of activated charcoal for tooth whitening. Founded in by paramedical aesthetician (aka skincare expert) Petra Konig, Warpaint has amassed a cult social media following and ships to 40 countries around the world. Not bad for a brand that hasn’t even turned one. (Post continues after gallery.)

Armed with war paint on Instagram

“Warpaint was created out of my own frustrations,” explains Konig.

“We have too many chemical-based teeth whitening products on the market. I wanted a natural product to clean, polish and whiten teeth.”

RELATED:THE FIND: The natural deodorant that actually works

Like a handful of activated charcoal products on Etsy and Amazon, Warpaint claims to remove stains, kill bacteria and naturally whiten teeth without chemicals and added nasties. All by simply dipping a wet toothbrush into the fine, odorless and tasteless black dust and brushing it onto teeth in small, gentle circles for two minutes. Spit it out, rinse and you’re done. Apparently.

So does this weird alternative whitening treatment actually work?

“It’s possible the trend has validity but there is no conclusive scientific evidence,” says Dr John Hagiliassis, dental lecturer at University of Melbourne and principal dentist at Freedom Dental.

RELATED:Want a whiter, brighter smile? Here are your options

At most, he believes the dust could wick away surface stains, but it won’t go any deeper.

“Activated charcoal is attracted to tannins which are often found in many stain-inducing drinks like wine, coffee and herbal teas,” he explains. “Theoretically this may be why activated charcoal also works as a stain remover… but there’s really no research to back up the claim.”

As for the belief that charcoal might be a safer, natural whitening option, Dr Ramesh Sivabalan of My Dental Team isn’t convinced.

“Being natural doesn’t mean it will do what it claims to do and it doesn’t mean it’s good for you either,” he says.

What’s really concerning about the rise of natural DIY dental products is the potential for misuse. Warpaint advises their product can be used for oil pulling or as a daily toothpaste. “You can even mix with coconut oil into a paste,” the website beams.

“These type of remedies are not a replacement for proper dental health practices like flossing, brushing and regular check-ups,” says Dr Hagiliassis, who was also concerned about the abrasive nature of some charcoal products. “It could even cause irreversible damage to your tooth enamel if used every day.”

Instead, Principal Dentist at Cosmic Smile Dental Jason Pang says to skip the DIY tooth trends and opt for proven methods.

“There has been over 20 years of research to show that the kinds of oxidising agents [found in clinical whitening treatments] are safe. Peroxide breaks down to oxygen and water so it is completely safe.”

RELATED:The 4 fancy dental products that aren’t worth the money – and 3 that are

If scrubbing your pearly whites with charcoal isn’t quite your thing, Pang says there’s a simple at-home alternative. “You would likely achieve the same result using smoker’s toothpaste which is more abrasive than normal toothpaste and it would be a lot cleaner than charcoal.”

“In the end, you get what you pay for,” he says. “True whitening relies on removing the internal or intrinsic stains which are deeper in the teeth.” And while activated charcoal is having its moment in the social media spotlight, it’s yet to be given any real scrutiny by those in the know.

I think I’ll stick with a good ‘ol fashioned brush and Oral-B 3D White Brilliant Mint toothpaste, thanks!

Have you ever tried to whiten your teeth with activated charcoal?

Dr. Jason Pang Of Cosmic Smile Dental: Excellent Helpful Hints On How To Find A Good Dentist

Dr. Jason Pang Of Cosmic Smile Dental Neutral Bay New South Wales (02) 9904 2880: Discusses the subject and gives Tremendous Tips and Hints On How To Obtain A First-class Service In Neutral Bay New South Wales